What I've Learned

This may be a bit redundant, but I've just got to emphasize how much I'm learning here. It's a bit of an information overload. To be honest. I think that I'll probably only truly begin to process it after I've returned home. However, I think there are some definite highlights, thus far. Although I'm learning so much about multimedia production and editing (I'm going to a Final Cut Pro class in a few minutes!) I think the most useful and in certain ways basic skill discussed is how we journalists choose stories.

Yeah, this might seem kind of like a no brainer. Most of us have been finding our own stories for a while. Personally I thought I knew what it was all about.

I was wrong.

I've realized that the stories I've come up with I've simply been lucky enough to fall into. I've never had a logical, step-by-step process attached to the story finding process. That's no longer the case. Thanks to Al Tompkin's presentation on the "5 Motivators" I have a much better grasp on why some stories work, and others don't.

Al's 5 Motivators

Money
Family
Safety
Health
Community

Al's secondary Motivators

Moral Outrage
Curiosity

This list is fairly simple. Yet I think it will impact me for the rest of my life. See, I've never really thought about why I choose to write a story. Sure, sometimes you just have to write a story, however, that doesn't mean you can't find one of these motivators. Al said all good stories contain one of more of these elements.

When I think back on the stories I've written I notice a trend. I tend to use Curiosity as my main motivator. This is a legitimate motivator, however, according to Al, you have to be careful. It works but not all the time. Basically you shouldn't rely on it.

Wow! That is crazy. I've honestly never analyzed my story choosing process. I analyze my writing, my interviewing and my design skills. But it never even crossed my mind that it would be useful to analyze the foundation of any story.

It's ridiculously obvious how obvious this should have been. In fact, it makes me want to go back and re due last year. Actually the last two-years.

Ah, well I guess that won't happen. It's simple but so important. And it fits. Thinking back over my most "successful" articles I see they all contained one or more of these elements. My "Hooked on Hookah" feature, which was an SPJ national finalist had a health component, a community component and an innate curiosity component.

So, my journalism education continues. As excited as I am for traveling next year (I'm really freaking excited) I kind of wish I could go work in the journalism industry. It's just so exciting and interesting. Right now is such an important and pivotal time, and I want in!